Due to uncertainty about the state budget and Illinois State University’s appropriation, ISU’s Board of Trustees called for a late meeting to discuss set rates for 2015-2016 academic year tuition and fees Saturday.
The BoT approved a 1.6 percent increase in tuition and fees for incoming students.
ISU’s four-year guarantee freezes mandatory fees for students, ensuring costs will not change from year to year. The mandatory fees for the 2015-16 academic year will be $79.46, an 80-cent increase from last year. The increase will be used to provide for a debt service, meet repair and replacement reserve requirements and fund other operational costs.
According to ISU President Larry Dietz, this increase does not include school projects such as the upcoming renovations on the Bone Student Center, approved by the board last May.
“I understand that we do have to increase tuition, but I would just hope that […] at some point in time, powers in Springfield will understand that investment in higher education is an investment of the future of the state,” Trustee Jay Bergman said.
Before approving the budget, members of the board emphasized the importance of maintaining ISU’s quality of education while keeping it affordable.
“In an effort to continue the quality as well as keep our finances stable, we’re increasing the tuition,” said Trustee Anne Davis.
Starting this fall, new undergraduate students from Illinois will pay $359.47 per credit hour in tuition, which is $10.47 more than last academic year. Out-of-state undergraduate students will pay $620 per credit hour for the 2015-16 academic year, which is $18 more than last academic year. All rates for these students will continue through summer 2019.
New in-state graduate students will pay $374 per credit hour, which is $14 more than semester credit-hour rates for 2014-2015. New out-of-state graduate students will pay $777 per credit hour for the 2015-2016 academic year, which is a $30 increase over 2014-2015 rates.
“I commend the staff and the board at 1.6 percent. I believe it’s a fair and […] I hope that families and students see we tried to come up with a number we believed was reasonable,” Trustee Rocky Donahue said.